Curriculum Outlines

Music at Donhead

Music Curriculum and Class Lessons

Music is an integral part of Donhead life and all boys have the opportunity to participate in musical activities and at every level. In the Pre-Prep School, the curriculum includes the Kodály approach and gradually feeds into the broader Music curriculum as the boys move into the Prep School. Music specialists undertake all the teaching. Lessons take place in our dedicated music room and are highly interactive, with boys having access to a wide range of tuned and un-tuned percussion instruments.

The Reception and Pre-Prep boys have 45 minutes of Music lessons per week and boys in LP1 upwards have an hour. Mrs Cheung teaches PP1 to LP1, and Mrs Curtis teaches the Reception classes and LP2 to Elements.

Choirs

There are three Choirs at Donhead. There are no fees for joining or membership of the Choirs.

The Donhead ChoirDirected by Mrs. CurtisThis is an auditioned choir, selected from boys in the Prep School (LP1 through to Elements). Each year, all boys are auditioned to see if they are ready to join the Donhead Choir. New members (Probationers) join on a trial basis. Once every boy has been heard, a revised Choir list is published on the Music Board by the end of October.The Donhead Choir performs at the Carol Service, Sacred Heart Masses, the Inter-House Music Competition, the Day of Celebration and out of school events. This Choir rehearses on Tuesday mornings from 8.00-8.45am in the Music Room.

The Senior ChoirDirected by Mrs. CurtisThis is open to all boys in the Prep School (LP1 through to Elements). Although places are not auditioned and any boy can join, membership requires a commitment to attend all rehearsals. Boys who are interested in joining this Choir should contact Mrs Curtis.This Choir performs at School Concerts and School Assemblies through the year and it rehearses on Monday mornings from 8.00-8.45am in the Music Room.

The Pre-Prep ChoirDirected by Mrs CheungThis Choir involves all boys in Pre-Prep 1 and Pre-Prep 2 and it performs at School Concerts during the Lent (Spring) and Trinity (Summer) Terms. The boys in this Choir perform a varied repertoire of songs and rhymes. The songs are rehearsed during the class lessons and they are brought together as a Choir for some rehearsals a few weeks before concerts.

Instrumental Music Groups

There are a number of instrumental groups. Boys who are interested in joining any of the following groups should contact Mrs Curtis or the respective teacher. There are no fees for joining or membership of the instrumental music groups.

OrchestraDirected by Mrs. CurtisThis is open to boys from Pre-Prep 1 upwards, who are learning an orchestral instrument. Rehearsals are on Wednesday mornings at 8.00-8.45.

Brass BandDirected by Mr MankariousThis is open to boys who are learning a brass instrument. Rehearsals take place during Thursday lunchtimes.

Guitar GroupDirected by Mr CoghettoThis is open to boys who are learning the guitar. Rehearsals take place during Thursday lunchtimes.

Violin GroupDirected by Miss ChestermanThis is open to boys who are learning the violin. Rehearsals take place before school on Fridays.

Opportunities for Performing

The Music Department is committed to nurturing the boys' musical talents and giving them many opportunities to perform. We have:

Twelve instrumental and/or group concerts per year.

An annual Inter-House Music Competition in which every Prep School boy participates.

The Donhead Carol Service.

Nativities for the Pre-Prep boys.

An annual production for each year group in the Prep School, which sometimes involves singing.

Frequent performances by soloists, instrumental groups and the Choirs on occasions such as assemblies, Masses and class lessons.

Choral workshops/Evensong and Orchestral Play Days at Senior Schools.

The Music Department is very keen to nurture the boys' musical talents and give them as many opportunities as possible. Looking beyond Donhead, support is available to boys who are considering applying for Music or Choral Scholarships at their secondary schools. Five Music Scholarships and one Music Exhibition have been awarded to five Donhead leavers for the academic year 2017-18. One boy has been accepted into the Royal College of Music’s Junior Department, another boy is a probationer at the Chapel Royal Hampton Court Palace and one pupil has recently been accepted by The Yehudi Menuhin School.